~ A very, very long time ago... ~
Deep inside the dark halls of Tambelon Castle, Emperor Grogar was hard at work. Grogar’s donkey servant, Bray, was off to the side, carefully assisting his master with the task at hoof.
“Bray, hand me those ingredients on the shelf over there. No, not that one, the other one. Up more. No, lower. Now you’re too low! Don’t you ever listen, you idiot?!”
Bray fumbled over the ingredients on the shelves as his voice became a nervous stutter.
“I’m s-sorry, M-Master.”
“You had better be. I need the exact ingredients or my spell won’t work properly. These creatures aren’t going to make themselves, you know.”
“Of course n-not. That would be q-quite a strange sight to see. Now where was I? Bat wing, eagle talon, lion paw...”
“Don’t forget the scorpion tail for the second spell and the peacock feathers for the third one, Bray.”
“R-Right, sure thing,” Bray stuttered. Grogar was making this so difficult. Not one, not two, but three different spells at once!
Confident that he had gathered everything, Bray headed back over to Grogar. The ingredients spilled all over the table.
“Buck it, Bray!” Grogar cursed. “Can’t you keep anything organized?! Clean this mess up immediately!”
Bray did so, and Grogar laid the last three ingredients for the first spell in front of him. This was it. He was ready. Taking a few steps back, Grogar allowed magic to flow out from the bell around his neck. The magic steadily pulsed for a short time until the spell was finished.
Oh, what a sight to behold! It was quite a pleasing result, if Grogar did say so himself. Curled up on the table laid a tiny multicolored creature, a draconequus, Grogar had called it. Two horns, a tan one and a light blue one, were atop its pony-shaped head. Its front limbs resembled an eagle talon and lion paw, and its back limbs resembled a lizard claw and pony hoof. The brown-colored body ended in a long red tail. Lastly, wings of a bat and a pony were placed neatly on the creature’s back. Grogar had never created anything the likes of it before, but he planned to do so similarly with the next two spells and this had been quite a pleasing test run.
The next spell worked out nicely. Another draconequus laid before Grogar, one with different hues of red and purple. For as tiny and innocent it might be now, Grogar had no doubt the little one would grow into a truly malicious being.
“One day I will see you transform the very cosmos themselves,” he murmured into the draconequus’s ear.
The third spell was quickly finished soon after, and a creature Grogar called a sarimanok was born. Its head had curled horns at the sides and peacock feathers draping down the back. It was a beautiful creature, though Grogar’s plans for it were not so beautiful. No, this creature would not bring beauty to the world, but destruction. All three of the new little ones would. As his devious plans danced around in his mind, Grogar chuckled evilly.
“Bray, go put those draconequus spells I wrote down away somewhere. I might want to update them to create more draconequuii later and they need to be in a safe spot where I won’t lose them.”
Bray grasped the papers in his mouth and trotted away. In his clumsiness, he fell over a water bucket that had been just a bit too far out in the middle of the floor. He dropped the papers in surprise as water spilled everywhere. The spells became soaked, the running ink making them illegible.
“Bray...what. Did. You. Do?”
Oh, dear. Grogar was absolutely furious now.
“I-It was an accident! I didn’t mean to -”
“You do realize that I needed those for remembering the spells I just wrote, right? Those were very long and detailed spells, Bray! What, do you think I’m going to spend hours rewriting them all again?! Because if so, I have some news for you. I won’t! It wouldn’t be the same! If I miss a word here or there, it could ruin the whole thing. I’ve already forgotten how I ordered a couple words! Now you’ve gone and wasted all my hard work!”
Maybe don’t try to cast three spells in one sitting next time, Bray thought. He didn’t repeat that out loud, though. If he tried to talk back to Grogar like that, he’d be in more trouble than he already was.
“We still have the draconequuii you already created,” came a nervous squeak from the donkey. He was trying to offer a helpful suggestion to calm Grogar, but he wasn’t sure if it was working.
Grogar was still angry, but he knew he had to suck it up and make the best of the situation.
“Indeed so, I suppose. Perhaps one day, I’ll figure something out.”
Well, he hoped he would. Unless he ever remembered the spell that had already begun to somewhat slip from his mind.
For now, though, he had to ensure the kids grew up properly and were molded into the evil, dangerous beings he wanted them to be. All of the land would bow to him under the threat of these monsters being used to punish any traitorous act. Ponies especially, oh how Grogar hated them. Their stupid pretty colors, their pathetic happiness, their foolish sense of love and family...it was disgusting.
Grogar decided that the three little ones would need names if he was to raise them. Real names, not just that of their species. The sarimanok was given the name Eris. Grogar just liked the sound of it.
“I said I would see you transform the cosmos one day,” he said to the red and purple draconequus. “So, I shall name you Cosmos. Make me proud.”
One more to go. Grogar settled his eyes on the multicolored baby draconequus before him, searching for a name, a meaning, anything.
“Chaos,” he said at last. “Chaos is what you shall represent. You, little one...shall be named...Discord.”